


March Madness

by UnicornAffair



Series: WNBA AU [2]
Category: Power Rangers (2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Sports, College, Gen, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-24
Updated: 2019-03-24
Packaged: 2019-12-07 00:35:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18227528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnicornAffair/pseuds/UnicornAffair
Summary: Freshman Trini Gomez gets her team to the finals of the biggest girls basketball tournament in the country. Only, she has to face off with senior Kimberly Hart, a player she idolized for years, and the UCONN Huskies.The Prequel To: That Could've Been Us





	March Madness

**Author's Note:**

> It's not me if I don't put a sports au in here. I really fell in love with writing this AU so I decided to expand it... <3 there'll be more to come ;)

The Louisville Cardinals have been selected as the fourth seed in the biggest college basketball tournament of the year.

As a freshman walk on, Trini Gomez couldn’t believe it that her team made it this far. Every year a college basketball team hustled and bustled to try and win their conference title just to get the opportunity to go up against the other best teams in the country. The entire nation was watching, putting together their brackets and placing bets on which team would go all the way to the top.

The stakes would only continue to grow with each and every round. 

Before the tournament began, Trini wasn’t a known household name. She was just a kid out of high school with a scholarship and a dream to get to the WNBA. Now? The freshmen point guard was one to watch. Suddenly she was asked to be interviewed after games more, her twitter follower count skyrocketed as the country fell in love with her quips and determination. 

Up until the finals Trini’s best friends Jason and Zack found a way to make it there and cheer her on in the student section. They even went all out to paint their faces red and white and their chests with her number on them. They were the best guys she could ever ask for, the ones that kept her grounded when her college basketball career took off

_ Sweet 16, Elite 8, Final 4 _

The cardinals continued to climb to the top, upsetting brackets left and right on the way. Not many people expected a young team to get very far, but quickly they became the ones to root for.

_ Louisville Cardinals vs UCONN Huskies.  _

The number one team in the country. The number one team to ever  _ exist _ in any sport. The women’s basketball team at UCONN was  _ famous  _ for the amount of titles under their belt. No men’s team came  _ close _ to the record they held, the trophies sitting in that case. UCONN sent out WNBA players,  _ Olympic  _ players left and right. They were the ones a sensible person would pick to take it all. A clean, poised, polished, dominating team. 

Freshman Trini Gomez would have to face up against the one college basketball player she looked up to the most.  _ Kimberly Hart.  _

While Trini was in high school she and her family would fill out their own brackets and watch the tournaments. The Huskies forward, Kimberly, always captured her eye. She made the game look easy, every shot she put up was full of grace. Trini would spend her evening looking up interviews with Kimberly...following her social media. If anyone was going to make it to the pros it was #14. So, maybe Trini had a crush on the girl as well. When Kimberly cut her hair at the start of her senior season... _ wow.  _

This was Kimberly’s final chance to get  _ one  _ last title under her belt. All she needed to do was beat  _ one  _ more team. 

Trini didn’t think she’d ever be on this floor, certainly not her first year in the college game. The stands were completely full of red and white respectively. The  _ sound _ alone from the crowd could be intimidating...but to Trini, it only pumped her up. This was a chance to show the world what she was made of. 

Kimberly Hart stood at the middle of the court, waiting for the team captain of the cardinals and the refs to get started. Trini was practicing threes on the edge of the key, catching Kim’s eye. The young point guard smirked, shooting off a practice three to show off...only for the ball to hit the rim and bounce out. So much for intimidating. Trini could see Kimberly’s smile...the Husky holding off on a laugh. 

Shake it off, Trini told herself, practice shots didn’t count. She still had a chance to impress Kimberly. 

When the game started, the crowd had erupted in, cheers and sounds. It was so hard for Trini to even see her teammates, so every play she had to call had to be a hand signal. The Huskies were an experienced team, a strong team, they were  _ comfortable  _ in a championship game. 

2-0

4-0

7-0

10-0

With Kimberly Hart scoring two threes in the first five minutes, the coach had to call for a time out. The Huskies were off to a great run, and the Cardinals had nothing to show for it but sloppy play and nerves getting the better of them. 

They could not be the team that crumbled under the pressure of the situation. They couldn’t be the team that were  _ blown out  _ of the finals. No. Trini came too far to lose like this. She wasn’t going to walk away from this game in shame. 

10-2

12-2

14-5

14-7

The cardinals switched their strategy. Man to man wasn’t working so instead they went with defending in zones. Each girl took a section of the court to try and keep the Huskies from making easy points. It was time to start playing aggressively, so Trini took it upon herself to help by double teaming some of the UCONN players. To get up and personal against Kimberly. 

Intercepted pass!

14-9

Steal! 

14-11

Kimberly Hart stepped on the line! Cardinals ball!

Trini took the ball up the middle of the court, her pinky and pointer finger up on her other hand to signal a play. She waited for one of the taller girls to set up a pick on the defender on Trini’s ass. Gomez didn’t waste a second to take a side step and shoot up a three. 

14-14. 

Just like that the fire was  _ on,  _ Louisville was back in the game. The red section of the crowd was going wild. The student section all started to dramatically bow down to Trini for making such a badass shot. 

Kimberly had come out of the game, the girl was getting so frustrated by the way Trini defended her that she needed some time to break. To refocus. To  _ observe  _ from the bench. That was fine in Trini’s mind, one less threat on the court, and she always thrived on having an audience. 

Just as Louisville was aiming to get ahead, UCONN slammed them back down to size with two back to back three point shots. 

20-14

It felt like the air was ripped out of their lungs to be shoved back down so quickly. UCONN wasn’t a joke. They were not a team to take lightly. Any misstep was turned into an opportunity. Every player on that team was a powerhouse in their own right. Louisville had to keep up their opponents fast pace or else they were going to be swallowed up.

Energy energy energy. Every possession was an opportunity to claw back into the game. 

20-16

22-18

25-21

The Cardinals were still behind but they weren’t going to stay down. Louisville player, Madison Rocca put up a three only for the ball to completely miss the basket all together. The crowd filled with loud taunting of  _ air ball, air ball,  _ that was sure to haunt Madison’s dreams. The ball was dangerously going to go out of bounds, to be turned over to the Huskies  _ again.  _ Trini wasn’t going to  _ let _ them get further ahead. By putting her entire body into it, she dove right into the UCONN bench to hit the ball back in bounds. 

Trini damn well knocked a sitting Kimberly back in her chair. The freshmen on top of the senior girl. “You okay?” Trini asked, shit, did she hurt her? She didn’t want to win because her competition was injured.

“Yeah” Kimberly was helped up by Trini. The game was on pause until Trini could get her ass back in the game. Both coaches watched in anticipation, hoping that their superstars came out of the collision unscathed. 

Holy shit. Trini was only registering now that she had Kimberly’s hand in hers, that her other hand was on 14’s back to help her up. Their eyes met and Trini could swear her legs felt like jello. “Good”

The older girl laughed, a teasing smile on her face, “You can let go of me now” 

Right. There was a championship game to play.

The Cardinals scored while Trini was out of commission. 

25-23.

The score was a one possession difference. The Huskies coach put his star, Kimberly Hart, back into the game. 

Trini had a severe height difference when it came to defending Kimberly. A mismatch that Hart took advantage of each and every time the girls were pitted against one another.

27-23

30-25

30-28

30-30

A rebound by Louisville, Trini was already running up the court for a long pass to make for an easy layup.

30-32

For the first time all night the Cardinals were  _ ahead _ of the Huskies. A timeout was called for the reigning champions, they needed to break the Cardinals momentum up. The Huskies didn’t want to risk their opponents being on top going into the second half.

33-32

33-34

35-36

The game was closer than ever now, the teams constantly went back and forth. The crowd watched on feeling uneasy. Neither UCONN or Louisville could say they were comfortable knowing who would come out ahead. 

38-36

38-38

40-38

A foul shot brought the game down, Kimberly Hart was on the line shooting two...but only making her second shot after the ball rolled around the net and dropped out.

41-40

41-42

Trini wasn’t done giving her all. If she were to pass out after the game and sleep for a week then so be it. This was the  _ championship. _ No do overs. No second chances.

43-42

45-42

Halftime was right around the corner. With 3 seconds on the clock, Louisville ball, Trini didn't have much time to make anything of it. The ball was thrown in.

3

Trini had to take as many steps as she could…

2

With one desperate shot up into the air, Trini heaved the ball with all of her strength.

1

It was just like back at home, where she would practice trick shots with Jason and Zack for fun. 

_ The buzzer went off. _

45-45

The shot was good! Going into the second half the Louisville Cardinals and UCONN Huskies were tied!

It was only  _ halftime.  _ Trini was starting to feel how much she exerted her body. The road to the championship was  _ long.  _ Tough conference win, then the rapid fire pace of the tournament. There was no resting in this race, and they were getting closer and closer to the finish line. The Cardinals were still in it, and as daunting as it seemed to go up against the highest caliber team...they weren’t letting them walk away with it. The Huskies had to fight just as hard to keep up with the pace. 

Trini had played most of the first half, so she took extra time to sit and watch Kimberly warm up on the other side of the court. This wasn’t a dream. This wasn’t the fantasy of playing the girl she had a “celebrity” crush on for so long. She had the pleasure of seeing Kimberly in her zone, and as much as she wanted to sit and talk to her...ask her questions, she couldn’t. Trini was here for one thing. To  _ beat  _ the likes of Kimberly Hart and the UCONN Huskies.

The second half started and the Huskies were already out to draw first blood. Kimberly Hart sunk a three point shot two seconds in to throw a dagger right into the Cardinals heart. A reminder that they were up against the  _ best  _ of the  _ best.  _

48-45

50-45

50-47

Back and forth back and forth. The fast paced game still neck and neck, only one possession separated the two. A three pointer there, a layup, a big block, a tussle on the ground. The Louisville Cardinals were going to grit their way through this game. 

59-59

Trini was hit hard with a foul, slamming against the ground and silencing the crowd. The freshmen hot shot stood the shortest on both teams. She could be tossed around easily, jostled, bumped. Trini would come out of this game bruised from the amount of times she had to fight to get through the paint. 

59-61

Both of her foul shots were made. The ESPN hosts were going  _ crazy  _ at how close this game was being played. 

Behind the back pass to Kimberly Hart for a three!

Trini Gomez goes in with a spin move for an easy jumper!

Kimberly Hart comes back with a layup! 

65-63

Kimberly Hart blocks a big shot from Trini Gomez! 

67-63

The Huskies were starting to pull away…

70-63

The Cardinals engines were starting to run low. Exhaustion was taking a toll. 

A frustration foul. 

72-63

They couldn’t lose like this. 

_ They couldn’t lose like this.  _

The Cardinals made it here, defied all odds in the final four to make it to the championship game.

72-65

74-65

76-65

One more run. All they needed to make was one more run. 

Double team Kimberly Hart, make her make a mistake. 

76-66

Trini watched carefully and intercepted a pass. 

76-68

The Cardinals were coming back  _ hot.  _

Foul! Kimberly Hart with two shots on the line. 

78-68

A  _ ten  _ point separation between senior Kimberly Hart and freshmen hot shot Trini Gomez.

There wasn’t much time left. Nothing in college basketball was impossible. 

78-70

80-70

80-73

80-76

Trini made back to back three pointers, if she had to carry this entire team on her back she was going to do it to get that trophy. 

82-76

A missed layup, rebound Cardinals. Another shot! Missed. Rebound Cardinals. The game was getting sloppy, desperate, shots were being put up there for the sake of  _ trying. _ Rimmed out. Rebound Cardinals.

The proud Louisville fans were gripping onto their hair. Groaning in agony at each missed shot. Nothing was  _ sinking  _ with plenty of opportunities. 

84-76

Time was running out. 

84-78

Tick tock. 

86-80

Foul!

88-80

The game was slipping through the Cardinals fingers. 

90-80

Ten more seconds. 

92-80

Kimberly Hart made her final shot as a UCONN Husky. Her final shot in her college career. This game was the girl’s swan song. Her moment. Another championship under her belt. 

One team had to come out of this game a loser. Trini had to stand and watch as their opponents celebrated a win...a win that was so freaking close, but lost at the end. 

The superstar husky took a moment to congratulate each of the Louisville girls for a tough game, she stopped at Trini...holding onto her hand just a little tighter.

“Hey. You played an amazing game out there” Kimberly tried to comfort the freshman point guard in her time of first  _ major  _ loss of her career. “Keep at it, and I know you’ll go far”

“You think so?”

“I know so” Kimberly gave her shoulder a squeeze, for a freshman making it this far, Trini had a lot to be proud of. Runner up in the  _ country  _ wasn’t so bad… 

*****

Zack and Jason invited Trini to their dorm room to try and cheer her up and watch the WNBA draft. 

This wasn’t Trini’s year to win a national championship. She had come to terms with it, and the entire city was proud of how far they had gotten. 

“It’s starting, it’s starting!” Zack called, wanting Jason and Trini to get out of the kitchen with the damn snacks and sit with him. 

“Who gets the first pick?” Jason asked, opening a bag of Doritos. 

“The Sparks” Trini was an avid fan of the WNBA for a long time. Though she moved around from place to place until high school, she had a soft spot for Texas team the San Antonio Silver Stars. “Shh, shh, shh. They’re picking”

_ “The Los Angeles Sparks pick Kimberly Hart!” _

“Yes! She did it!” Trini pumped her fists in the air. The girl she had admired so long achieved the pro status that Trini had always dreamed of. Trini watched Kimberly’s basketball career all throughout college, only for her to become the first round choice in the draft. 

Kimberly Hart  _ did it.  _

Jason looked over to Zack, the other boy immediately on his laptop. “What’re you doing?” 

“Oh this made Trini’s birthday present easy” Zack laughed absolutely planning on getting Trini a gold Sparks jersey with Hart on the back.

She’d be proud to wear that jersey, it wouldn’t be hard to convince the boys to drive to the nearest WNBA team to watch Kim play as a pro. She was genuinely so so happy for the other girl, because if Kimberly could make her dream come true, so could Trini. 

This wouldn’t be the last of Trini Gomez. 

Not by a long shot.


End file.
